Pujara worked on his game and put things right: Sir Ian Botham

Cheteshwar Pujara displayed grit and patience in order to showcase a perfect Test knock. His knock of 132* will surely go down as one of his toughest knocks. He stitched 78 runs for the last two wickets with the help of Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah to take India past England’s score.

India ended up on getting a 27-run lead. Many cricketers were impressed by Pujara’s gutsy knock. One among them was the former England all-rounder Sir Ian Botham. He feels that Pujara worked on his game when was axed in the first Test to comeback and score his best ever overseas knock.

He went on to add that England has a player who can bat for long time in Alastair Cook, “I think he will be delighted because he was under the cosh and was left out of the first Test match, but like all good players who get left out, he went and worked on his game and has come back and put things right. England do have a player just like Pujara in their side in Alastair Cook, who will bat and bat and bat but he just hasn’t got the runs at the moment. I don’t think he’s that far away from doing that again for the team,” Botham wrote in his Sky Sports’ column.

Unimpressed with Pant’s 29-ball duck

At one stage of the game, India was expected to get a huge lead but Moeen Ali’s fifer changed the complexion of the game. Botham wasn’t impressed with the way Indian middle-order reacted to the situation. Rishabh Pant bagged a 29-ball duck by playing defensive game.

“I do think India will be a bit disappointed with their middle order and I couldn’t work out Rishabh Pant’s innings. As a young player who is renowned for his stroke play – who struck a six with only the second ball he faced in Test cricket at Trent Bridge – to poke around for 29 deliveries and then get out. They are all good players in the Indian team but sometimes you’re not in as good nick as you’d like to be.”

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